Ousama
by Sakuya01
Summary: Master gathers everyone for a celebration party some time after defeating Homurabi. The problem is, some of their former enemies are also there, and not everyone is in a forgiving mood. So Master suggests a game…


**Disclaimer:** I don't own Monochrome Factor or any of its characters.

**Summary:** Master gathers everyone for a celebration party some time after defeating Homurabi. The problem is, some of their former enemies are also there, and not everyone is in a forgiving mood. So Master suggests a game…

**Author's Note:** This fic is based on the manga and was written under the premise that things are settled happily for everyone in the end. Character personalities are based on how they are in the manga, which means they probably seem out-of-character most of the time to those who've only seen the animé so far. I won't guarantee everyone always acts in-character, but I think I did get it mostly right…Lulu really is this way with Aya, is what I want to say! Well, I guess no one cares about that… (sweats)

**Warning:** Fun, random perversions, and revenge. The king and numbers were decided in an actual draw, so they really are random. Might be spoilers from chapter 34 and some later chapters. No pairings that weren't already fated to happen :)

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Ousama

When Master returned from the back of his bar, they had already pushed two tables together to comfortably seat all of them, and now they sat there, not relaxed yet, but beginning to, finally. Akira was, as usual, being flanked by Kengo and Kou on both sides, both of whom were noisily trying to stir up a conversation with the rest. Lulu had scooted her seat beside Aya's to snuggle up with her, and the angry girl was vainly trying to push her away. A strangely subdued Shirogane, alone on his side of the table, sat moodily sipping the celebratory Bordeaux red Master had earlier set down in front of him. Shirogane's glare would sometimes stray towards the tense form of Nanaya, who sat on one of the chairs opposite Aya's and Lulu's in steadily fidgeting silence.

Master smiled and set the last pack of sodas gently down on the table. Then he took his seat beside Nanaya, who hesitated, his hand moving to assist him but finally drawing back. Somehow, Master knew that Akira had noticed this, and that Shirogane, too, was taking note of it with a sneer. Since they'd returned from the shadow world, Akira had shown Nanaya a brisk, partly wary niceness which had surprised Master the first time but which he promptly put down to the boy's rather blunt but forgiving nature. He was probably the reason Nanaya had joined them there today, even if Lulu might have been the hand that persuaded him.

"There's no need to be too much on guard, is there?" Akira presently asked, his voice flat with feigned disinterest. "The fighting's over."

"We're hardly friends here," Nanaya said, stressing his point by looking at Shirogane and then at Kou. Kou, at least, was trying not to look distrustful, while Shirogane did not try at all. Master and Akira sighed at the same time, although Master's sigh was a barely registered release of breath, and Akira's was loud and almost rude and had a trace of a question about it, and the question was: 'Are you stupid?' Akira leaned back and whacked Kengo solidly on the back of the head, and Kengo whimpered a protest which Akira ignored.

"Hey, idiot," Akira said. "You're friends with that guy, right?"

"Hmm? Well, yeah, I guess so." Kengo raised his arms in the air and gestured widely with them, and Akira and Kou ducked automatically under his flailing arms. "We're all friends!"

"Yeah, now don't be so loud," Akira grumbled, and turned to Nanaya with a muttered: "See?" Nanaya shook his head in suspicious confusion, but Lulu laughed and said: "Lulu's friends with everyone too!"

"Well," Aya said, grudgingly, "it's good to have something like this once in a while. It's like saying 'a job well done,' isn't it?"

"Please don't be too optimistic," Shirogane said, and put his glass down. It was probably the first time he had spoken that whole afternoon. "There's still a lot to do. Although this time it would probably be mostly between me and the other Kings." Shirogane glanced at Akira when he said this, and Akira looked away and nervously clenched his fist.

"Already planning to take Aki away, are you?" Kou joined the conversation. He slung his arm around Akira, who shouted in surprise and attempted half-heartedly to pull away. Kou pecked the boy's cheek in between words: "That…isn't…allowed!"

And just like that, Shirogane's aura shivered between rage and murder, and Master stood up, as did Aya, who also sensed Shirogane's killing intent and was not as used to it as Master was. But Master smiled at her, and Aya reluctantly took her seat again. "And now, everyone," Master said smoothly to the room, lifting his glass of water from the table. The others followed after, Akira with a small grateful nod which Master sensed but didn't see, and they echoed: "Kampai!"

"No drinking for minors!" Aya reminded. For some reason, she was taking Lulu's addition to their class as a mark that she was also a minor, despite having been told that Lulu was, in fact, older than Kou. She sniffed at Lulu's glass to check if it was really cider like she claimed it was, and Lulu cried: "Why won't you believe Lulu? Master was the one who prepared it!"

Kengo had gotten to the cans of soda and was now clumsily opening one. Akira fiddled with his glass of ice water and looked bored. He set the glass down to help Master unwrap the two giant plates of assorted sushi from their cellophane covering, and then captured a shrimp between his newly acquired chopsticks.

Across him, Shirogane sighed and smoothed out his frown. He tipped his head back and drank down the generous shot in his glass, not wincing. Kou, too, was starting with the bottle of whiskey he'd pleaded with Master for, which was a bad sign. To dissuade him from drinking too much, Master called: "Don't be reserved with the snacks. Please eat, all of you."

"Ah, Master," Kengo said cheerfully, "did you make the sushi?"

"I didn't… Well, due to a number of reasons, I can't," Master said. Kengo winced and quickly apologized, and Master smiled to show that he hadn't been offended at all. "They were delivered here for me."

"They're good," Akira said, getting himself another shrimp. The others started picking up chopsticks as well, though not Master and Shirogane. Nanaya said: "If those guys aren't gonna eat, I'm gonna think these are poisoned or something."

"That would be nice, wouldn't it," said Shirogane, and his tone was dark. Akira kept chewing for a moment more, then took a pair of chopsticks from the table and threw them straight at Shirogane. Shirogane caught them between his fingers before they hit him, and then, lowering his hand, he smiled at Akira very, very nicely. Akira took no notice; it was Kou beside him who winced.

"Akira-kun," Shirogane said, "why are you taking his side?"

"I'm not taking any side," Akira said, frowning. He tapped his chopsticks once against a plate, the dull noise suddenly loud in the mostly quiet room. "But if you keep trying to pick fights, I won't be able to enjoy my meal, and I'm hungry. I'm really hungry, Shirogane."

"So you say."

Akira glared and crossed his arms, daring the older man to say something more about it. "Got a problem with that?"

"Hey, Aki," Kou said weakly, giving Akira's shoulder an equally weak shake. Master raised his hands to calm everyone down, finally turning to face Nanaya. "I'm sorry," Master said. "I was just getting myself used to the surroundings so I would know where everything is, but I'll eat now if that's all right."

"Okay," Nanaya mumbled, sullenly sorry. Lulu pouted at him, but Nanaya ducked his head and wouldn't apologize. Lulu shared a quick look with Aya. At Aya's nod, she leaned over the table and poked Akira's side. "Akira-kun," she sang out. "We're going to eat lots and lots, right?"

"Shut up," Akira said, but he didn't sound annoyed. Rather than go back to eating though, he set his chopsticks down and took up his glass again. He didn't drink from that either.

Kengo, the only person who didn't notice anything was wrong, finally managed to pull the uncooperative tab from his second can of soda and cheered. "Hey, Akira," he said loudly, nudging the other boy. "Did you notice how they seem to make the tabs stronger than the whole can? I thought I was never gonna get it open…"

Kengo was ignored.

After a few polite comments on the food, which got absorbed like dead static by the air, no one else was speaking.

Kengo's drinking was rather noisy.

It could be worse, Master thought. At least no one was dying yet. Obviously they needed something to take their mind off of things.

"How about we play a game?" Master asked.

…

Master held the numbered chopsticks in his hand and hoped his fingers adequately covered all the numbers. "Just to make sure everyone gets it," Master said, "I'll explain the rules of the King game. The chopsticks in my hand have the numbers one to seven, and one has the character 'Ou' instead of a number." Master paused to smile at Akira. "Thank you for numbering them for me."

"That's all right," Akira said, and Master nodded another thanks and went on: "Well, basically, we draw each round, and the King orders a number to do something. Only after the order has been given will everyone else be asked to put their numbers down, so the King doesn't know beforehand who he gives the order to. After the number has successfully finished what he's been asked to do, the chopsticks will be returned to me and we start a new round."

"We each have to pick one from there, right?" Aya asked uncertainly. She had heard about the game before, and thought perhaps most of them in the room had. "But this is weird. I thought that pervert would have been the one to suggest this." She indicated Kou, who looked at once excited and slightly put out that he hadn't thought of it first. Master smiled. "I'm a bartender after all."

"Okay," Akira said. "I'm bored anyway. And I guess everyone else can take this opportunity to get to know each other so they can get along or whatever and leave me in peace." He looked at Shirogane with a slight challenging rise to his brows. "You're playing too, right?"

"…Right."

"Yeah, it sounds fun!" Kengo said, while Nanaya crossed his arms and scooted his chair a bit away from the table. "This is stupid," he muttered roughly. "Guys play this to get to know girls…"

"There are girls here too," Lulu said, pouting. "Although Lulu claims Aya-chan." She threw her arms around Aya, who blushed and shouted: "What are you deciding on your own?"

"Okay, then." Master held out the chopsticks, and they drew, Lulu giggling out a long, breathy 'Ousama dare?' so that Akira told her to shut up. They looked at the chopsticks in their hands. When no one broke the silence, they looked at each other quizzically, the weight of their collective gaze finally settling on Master.

"Oh, sorry," Master said, looking apologetic. "That must mean I'm King." He held out his chopstick, and sure enough, there was the character for King written in Akira's sharp, heavy hand. "I guess I have to ask Nanaya-kun next time to tell me what I've gotten."

"Your order?" Shirogane asked stiffly. Kou leaned forward and urged: "Make it a good one."

"Hmm…Uhm, then, number one crawls on his stomach to the bar?"

"What?" Kou let his breath out in a puffy smirk. "That's not good at all." Master looked even more apologetic.

Lulu raised her hand. "I'm One!" She skipped to her feet, looked down at the floor, and then looked back at Master. She asked, uncertainly: "Your floor's not dirty, is it?"

"It's just been mopped," Master assured her, and Lulu shrugged and lay down on her stomach. She started to pull herself forward with her arms to the bar. Kou brought his hand up to suppress a mad chuckle which Akira and the others understood when he leaned down to look under the table at Lulu's bare legs. Aya _accidentally_ overturned her glass on Kou's head, and Kou came up spluttering and blinking. He took his glasses off and wiped at his eyes, and when he looked again, Lulu was already returning to her seat. "Aya-chaaan," Kou whined, and Aya closed her eyes and turned her head away from him. Master collected the chopsticks again, and they started another round.

"Ah, I'm King," Aya said with a note of surprise and elation in her voice. "I don't know what to ask though…"

Akira hooked one arm over the back of his chair and smirked, idly kicking at Kengo's leg for him to pay attention. "This should be interesting," Akira said. "What sort of perverted order do you think the prefect can come up with?"

"Shut up!" Aya said. The challenge given, she tapped the chopstick against her lips in thought while Lulu distractingly cheered her on.

"Ugh…how about…seven…" Aya looked at the expectant and sullen faces around her and finished: "…embraces number one?" She was blushing. Akira laughed against his hand at her reaction to her own order, making Aya slouch in her seat in embarrassment.

"This guy didn't get seven or one," Nanaya told the room, looking at Master's number and throwing it down along with his own number five on the table. Akira and Lulu threw down their own numbers, apparently also safe.

"All right," Kou sighed. He held up the number seven before throwing it down on the table. "Who's the lucky guy?"

A pause, then Kengo set down his number with the rest. "It's not me."

Shirogane tipped his hat low. "Kou, if you try to touch me, you're dead."

Kou blinked. Then he sighed loudly and arranged his face in a childish pout, turning not towards Aya but Akira. "You can't be serious."

"Go on," Akira said, giving Kou a swift but gentle whack on the back. "Shirogane, it's part of the game, remember?"

Shirogane looked angry for a moment, then he tipped his hat lower and smiled. "The game doesn't say I have to let him touch me, does it?"

"But your number was mentioned as part of Aya's order."

"That's right, Shirogane," Master said, smiling to soften the blow. "Since you're involved in the king's order, even if it was Kou who was ordered to do something, it's as if you also received the tacit order to let him embrace you."

"So that's the way it works," Kengo said wonderingly.

"I think that sort of clause was invented in the last minute," Shirogane said, looking at Akira. Akira looked every bit unrepentant and just a little impatient when he pushed Kou forward across the table. Kou balanced precariously on his hands, careful not to tip over any glasses or squish the sushi.

Shirogane and Kou looked at each other and simultaneously smiled in deepest irritation. Kou reached farther and put his arm around Shirogane's neck.

"This happens only once," Kou said.

Shirogane sat as tense as a drawn bow, but he allowed himself to be hugged roughly. "This never happened at all," he said when Kou finally let go.

"All right, next round."

…

Kengo looked down at the chopstick in his hand and punched the air in front of him. "Cool!" he said. "Okay, I, uh…I order number two to pretend he's a catfish!"

The others stared. "What kind of order is that?" Akira asked. "How do you even expect a catfish to act?"

"Well," Kengo said meditatively, "he'll have a pretty long moustache, I guess. And since he's out of water, he'll have to flop around? And open his mouth really wide like this." Kengo demonstrated, mouth yawning open in a sushi-filled smile.

"Change it," Akira said tiredly.

"Oh, okay, if Akira doesn't like it," Kengo said, and Aya, who had gotten the number two, breathed a sigh of relief. "I order number four to tell a joke!"

A pause. Then Akira said: "Why did you change the number?"

"Eh?" Kengo scratched the back of his head. "What number was it before again?"

"Never mind." Akira stood up. "You mean a joke more successful than yours?" He took in a breath and ignored the shocked, open-mouthed faces of the others, who all appeared unable to grasp the idea of him telling a joke. He'd cracked open a joke book before, just out of curiosity. It wasn't as if he didn't know any jokes.

Well, let's get this over with, Akira thought.

"Put your foot on the futon," Akira said, acidly, and sat back down.

"Er, okay." Kengo looked uncertain. Akira dropped his number on the table. "New round."

…

"Heh," Akira said. "I guess I'll keep it simple. Number one will drink a whole can of soda. From his shoe."

Aya sighed. "And I thought I'd escaped the last one…" She hooked her shoe off and hesitated with it in front of her. She opened a can and poured the contents in her shoe, spilling some in her hurry.

"New can," Akira ordered, and Aya set the old one down forcefully on the table so that Master winced. Akira shrugged.

"I didn't wait for you to drink before saying it. You should be thankful."

"I don't care," Aya seethed. "You'll still pay for this…" She held her shoe in front of her mouth. Remembering she'd just polished her shoes, she moved her mouth so that her bottom lip did not touch the outside of the shoe while she drank. When she was through, she dropped her shoe on the floor and quite understandably did not wear it again. Lulu reached down and propped the shoe against a table leg to dry. Straightening up again, she patted Aya's back. "Do you need to go to the bathroom?"

"_I'm fine_."

…

Nanaya dropped the King's chopstick on the table with a smirk. "Number four," he said, making it up as he said it, "lies on top of number five for exactly one minute."

"Well, that sounds simple," Kou said. "And it's not about me." He dropped his chopstick on the table with a triumphant grin. Kengo raised his hand. "I'm Five! What about Akira?"

"Two," Ryuuko said. Kengo turned his head at the not-so-familiar voice and exclaimed: "Ah! Akira!" Kou laughed and threw his arms around Ryuuko from behind, while the others mostly acted surprised. After a while though, Master held up his number.

"It's me, isn't it?" Master said, except the presence of the other Kings had somehow affected him and the one who sat there was Shisui, looking just a bit lost. "No one else is saying they're Four."

"Gah!" Kengo exclaimed. "Why did you all change?"

"The light isn't very balanced yet," Ryuuko explained, patting Kengo on the head to calm him down. "Since this has been happening more often, I suppose I'll probably remember this when I change back. Good luck, Shisui," he called to the other King as Shisui stood up. Kengo sheepishly did the same, and lay down on the floor. Shisui lowered himself on top of him carefully, and Kengo closed one eye against a fall of green hair, brushing them out of the way.

Lulu counted out their minute, prolonging the count by giggling and drawing out some of the numbers. Aya slapped the back of her head for being mean, and Lulu continued at a more normal pace.

"I hope I'm not too heavy…" Shisui said.

"Ah, no," Kengo assured Shisui, sweating at the other's politeness. "You're very light, actually…"

Ryuuko rested his elbows on the table, one hand supporting his chin as he gave Shirogane a close-eyed smile. "We played this before. Do you remember, Shirogane?"

Shirogane pursed his lips. He said, levelly: "We promised never to speak about it."

Kengo looked up curiously from the floor, and Shisui's lips brushed his chin before the other also craned his neck. "Why? What happened?"

There was a pause. Then Ryuuko said: "Shirogane—"

"I didn't know it was your number!"

"—ordered me to—"

Shirogane leaned over the table, the glasses clinking but not falling over with his almost violent movement. He clamped his hand over Ryuuko's mouth. "Akira-kun," Shirogane said, and then, more desperate: "_Akira-kun_." Ryuuko blinked, narrowed his eyes against the sudden dizziness which overcame him and slumped forward. Shirogane held him securely by the shoulders while Ryuuko's form grew hazy and unraveled in motes of light and he changed back into Akira.

"I was remembering something bad," Akira muttered sleepily as Shirogane gently pushed him back into his seat. Shirogane straightened up to see the others watching him. Lulu had forgotten to keep counting, and Nanaya had lost interest in his own order and was looking at Shirogane with his eyebrows raised in a half-scornful, half-disbelieving scowl.

Finally, Aya cleared her throat. "That must have been really bad," Aya said.

…

Once more, Akira held up the chopstick with the character for King.

"As expected of Aki," Kou drawled proudly, and Akira sighed and said: "Somehow, something seems to be bothering me, but whatever." He slapped the chopstick down on the table. "Master," he said, turning on his seat to look at Master, who had also earlier changed back. "Do you have some eggs here?"

"They're used as an ingredient for some drinks, so yes," Master said. "Do you need some?"

"Yeah, please give me one," Akira said. Master wandered over to the bar and back and held out an egg to Akira. Akira took it and broke the shell one-handed against the rim of his glass, letting the contents fall inside, the yolk swimming whole and undamaged in the albumen mixing in a cloudy swirl with the water still in the glass. The others stared, and Kengo said: "Is it really that easy to do?"

Akira shrugged lightly, setting the two broken pieces of eggshell down beside his glass. "I order number three to keep the egg yolk in his palm, and then with the hand which has the egg yolk, he has to shake hands with everyone except the King."

"So cruel, Aki," Kou whined, but Akira merely shrugged again and smirked. "It's the egg yolk or the egg white," Akira said. Aya shuddered; Lulu let out a disgusted wail, and Master winced.

Shirogane coughed gently into his hand. "How did you know I had number three?"

"I didn't," Akira said. "But even better. Go on."

Shirogane frowned, finally removing the glove on his left hand. The mark of the contract was redly visible on the back of his hand, and Akira averted his eyes. Shirogane sighed, scooped out the yolk from the glass and allowed it to settle in the middle of his palm. He looked at the others, who likewise sighed and nodded for him to continue.

It would of course be easy for Shirogane to keep the yolk secure as long as his partner didn't move too much. Hopefully everyone else had deduced this.

Aya held out her hand and kept it slack while Shirogane shook hands with her. Lulu hardly touched Shirogane's hand with hers, not wanting to risk her hand getting sticky with yolk. And then Kengo. Shirogane looked doubtfully at his outstretched hand and his smiling face, and with no choice in the matter, shook his hand. Kengo unthinkingly squeezed back, and the yolk burst, pouring sticky, yellow juice from their hands to the table.

Kengo yelped in miserable surprise, and Akira pushed his chair back and away from him a bit. "Okay," Akira said. "Three more."

Kou made a face and whined, but took Shirogane's hand. Nanaya, with a sense of grim amusement, held out his arm which Shirogane had cut off and which had healed, scabby, with the help of kokuchi. Shirogane shook his hand with a frozen smile that said he was not amused.

"Ah, sorry, Master," Akira said when it was Master's turn.

"Don't worry about it," Master sighed, and accepted Shirogane's sticky handshake.

…

"Finally!" Lulu said, and both Kou and Nanaya groaned. Aya, too, looked a bit taken aback at the idea of Lulu being King.

"Uhm, then…" Lulu burbled happily and thought for a bit. "Number two will go outside and shout 'I love strawberries!' "

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Aya muttered, the others joining in her relief. Shirogane made a sound which was too loud to be a hiss and too soft to be a growl.

"Outside, you said?" Shirogane said.

"It won't count if other people don't see you," Akira said. "Here, I'll lend you the Doppler. You can wear it without any trouble, right?"

Shirogane looked down at the proffered doll. "I hope I had lied about it that time."

Kou smirked horribly. "Make it loud, Shirogane-san."

Shirogane stepped out of the bar stiffly and took a deep breath. Before he shouted though, he closed the door behind him so that it hopefully muffled his voice. It was the people on the other side of the door, after all, whose thought somewhat mattered in this.

He immediately went back in when he was through, ignoring the surprised looks he earned from a couple, a salaryman out early, and an old lady walking her dog outside. He sat back down and tried to ignore Kou as well, but he was laughing quite loudly.

Shirogane gritted his teeth.

He was really going to kill Kou.

…

"Okay," Nanaya said. "Number one sucks on a piece of candy and gives it to Two, who has to hold it against his cheek until the game ends."

"Why do you people think up such sticky things?" Aya complained, but she put her number down and it was five and not one or two. Other numbers followed hers to make a small pile.

"I'm One," Kengo said brightly.

"Two," Kou said, and grumbled: "Why did I bother washing my hand…?"

…

"Shirogane-san," Kou said charmingly, skimming the candy around to leave a slightly drying trail of green food coloring on his cheek. "I just noticed you haven't had a single round as King yet."

Shirogane looked at the number on his chopstick and debated on whether or not to curse. He settled on smiling at Kou, and cutting him to pieces and the pieces into more little pieces in his mind. "Does this mean you're King, Kou?" Shirogane asked, just before Lulu jumped from her chair and cheered herself.

"No," said Kou belatedly.

"The cute king," Lulu said, "orders number six and four to kiss until the ice cube they'll be keeping between their mouths melt!"

"Ah, I'm number six!" Kengo said.

Akira sighed. "This can't be happening."

"Yeah, I was hoping it would be between two of the boys," Lulu said, and with the chopsticks she was using to eat, fished out an ice cube from the small metal pail Master kept at the counter. She brought it to Akira. "Now, Akira-kun…"

Akira kept his mouth stubbornly closed for all of ten seconds, and then he sighed, opened his mouth and allowed Lulu to feed him the ice. He motioned to Kengo, who was laughing hollowly in a sort of panic. "Akira, are you sure—"

Akira clamped his mouth over the other boy's, transferring the ice to him and making a small sound of poorly realized relief when the burning cold left his tongue. Shirogane coughed in what could have been indignation or just the need to clear a dry throat. The noise Kou made was somewhere between horrified and proud.

Then Akira remembered that they had to keep that kiss until the ice cube melted, and he frowned in frustration. He held the other's jaw in place, ignoring Kengo's squirming and Lulu's squeals, and slipped his tongue in to move the ice around, sometimes pulling back a bit, his mouth open over Kengo's, to allow himself or the other to breathe. Kengo, Akira thought with dim annoyance, wasn't moving at all, leaving him to do most of the work. Finally, though, the ice was gone and he could pull away.

"Spit," Akira said, pointing with one finger at the corner of his own mouth to show Kengo where the trail of saliva was on Kengo's face so the other could wipe it off. Kengo stared, then obediently wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Where did you learn to kiss like that, Akira-kun?" Shirogane asked.

"I was just melting the ice," Akira said. He frowned, looking a bit curious. "Why, was it good?"

And Shirogane had been ordered to declare an insane love for strawberries and into having a sticky toddler hand. He turned his head away and muttered: "Never mind."

…

This time, when no one stepped forward as the king, everyone knew enough to look at Master expectantly.

"Okay," Master said, moving towards the bar. He poured soda into an empty glass and broke an egg over it. And then, apparently not finished yet, he took a pack of chips from underneath the counter, ground the chips and threw them in as well, stirred it, and returned with the drink to the table.

"Number seven drinks this."

Aya sighed and reached for the glass. "I have really bad luck in drinking things today…"

…

"It appears I am now King," Shirogane said, and muttered, coolly: "Which is how it should be." He leaned back, crossed his legs, and said: "I order number seven to lick the king's shoe."

There was an uncomfortable bit of silence. Aya and Lulu dropped their numbers on the table, and Akira dropped his six with a relieved sigh. Kengo and Kou followed. Nanaya said: "This guy has it."

"Master…" Shirogane began, dismayed, but Master waved his impending apology off.

"It's all right," Master said, smiling as always. "I can do that. And I haven't been properly grateful for Shirogane's help yet."

"You understand this is now war between Rei and Shin," Kou said over the table to Shirogane after Master had knelt down by Shirogane's chair to follow the order. Shirogane frowned but didn't say anything.

"Was that what happened with Ryuuko-san?" Aya whispered over to Kou.

"Oh, no. That bastard Shirogane threw me at a wall so I'd forget, and Ryuuko took pity and pulled out that hypnotist coin trick on me so I wouldn't be killed. It had to have been much worse."

"You weren't drunk at the time, were you?"

"I don't remember," Kou said. "Eh, I hope so."

…

"Oh, it's me again! Look, Akira!"

"Yeah, yeah, shut up now," Akira said. He leaned back in his seat. "Don't tell me you're going to ask for another joke."

"Uhm, well…" Kengo scrunched up his face. "What would be nice, Kou-nii?"

"What about a clothes exchange? It's always done in games like this, and no one's ordered anyone to do it yet."

"Ah, right. Then I order two and seven to exchange clothes!"

Lulu dropped the number two on the table. "But Lulu like this skirt," Lulu said. "It's Lulu's favorite…"

Shirogane dropped the number three with a certain pride at not being involved this time, Aya the number six, muttering: "Saved by one number…"

"Kengo," Akira said. "Kou-nii."

Kou turned towards Akira and ruffled his hair with his hand that wasn't holding the piece of candy to his cheek. "You don't have seven, do you?" Kou asked. Akira's pause following the question didn't need to say anything.

"Uhm," Master said. "There's a room at the back…"

"Fine," Akira said, standing up and moving towards the room. Lulu also stood up, but was a bit slower to comply. She twiddled her thumbs. "Do I have to change along with Akira-kun?"

Akira narrowed his eyes. "Don't worry. I'll turn around so I won't see anything."

"But you'll still be there…"

"Obviously," Akira said. He rubbed at the back of his neck in exasperation. "Please think about me for a moment here. You want me to change into a dress out in the hall?"

"But you're a boy. Boys shouldn't change clothes in the same room as a girl." And then, skipping over and wrapping her arms around him, changing her tune by quite a bit: "Lulu won't be blamed for anything that happens, okay?"

Aya spluttered. "What does that mean?" She stood quickly from her seat, the chair scraping behind her. "Akira, don't even think of doing anything! I'm going in that room with you!"

Akira sighed. "Aya will go in the room with Lulu then," he said, recognizing defeat. "Just open the door a bit so I can hand my clothes in." He turned towards Kengo. "That doesn't include the underwear, right?"

"No, of course not!"

"Will the clothes even fit?" Akira grumbled, removing his jacket, his shirt, and then his jeans, and handing them through the slit of the door to Aya. The black dress was handed back to him, and the door closed. Akira sighed and held the dress up, wishing he could just stay naked or something. Maybe he'd be lucky and the dress wouldn't fit.

As it turned out, Lulu's breasts were big enough that the dress fit Akira's wider frame, although the waist part was a bit tight. When Aya opened the door again with Lulu's ribbons and her pair of shoes in one hand, Akira stepped back and shook his head roughly. "Now that's just impossible, isn't it?"

"Lulu, I told you the shoes wouldn't fit," Aya said, and threw them back in the room. She was still holding the ribbons though.

Akira looked back at the other people sitting around their table, who except for Master were busy pretending they hadn't been looking at him. Forget Kengo, Kou wasn't meeting his eyes, his expression so serious he could only be holding back a laugh he knew Akira wouldn't have appreciated. At least Nanaya was busy drinking his soda and trying to act casual.

Shirogane nodded at Akira and pointedly did not remind him of his own sadistic order involving egg yolk and handshakes. "Do you need help, Akira-kun?" The smile was just too obvious in his voice, and Akira heard the unspoken question: 'Do you want to give up?'

Akira glared, turned and yanked the ribbons from Aya's hand. He returned with these to the table, and because he knew Shirogane hadn't been sincere in his offer to help and wouldn't expect Akira to take him up on it, decided with a rebel's contrariness to do just that. He cleared the table in front of Shirogane and sat himself there unceremoniously, bracing his leg with his foot on Shirogane's shoulder. Shirogane blinked, and very slowly shook his head.

"Honestly," Shirogane said. "Do you know what you're doing, Akira-kun?"

"Pissing you off," Akira calmly replied, holding the ribbons out to him. "Some of these go around each leg, apparently, but I don't know Lulu enough to know how you're supposed to tie them, and which ones actually go to her hair. I expect you do."

"Why would you think that?"

"You know her longer," Akira insisted, and his mouth twisted upwards in a sharp smile. "And you offered. So get to it."

Shirogane sighed. He took the ribbons from Akira and carefully did not meet Kou's eyes.

"I'm watching you," Kou said.

…

With Aya and Lulu back in their seats, (Lulu fussing over the shirt's tight fit), and Akira finally returned safely to his side, Kou was able to relax a bit. And then they drew for the new round, and he smiled at his luck. "Well," he drawled. "What should I ask, I wonder? How about number five exchanges clothes with Aki?"

Akira tensed. "What will you do if it's Aya, Kou-nii?" Aya had a red parka over her blouse which did look comfortable if only because it had sleeves, but Aya's skirt was even shorter than Lulu's.

"Well, you can't do that in any case," Master said. "You can't include one of our names in your order, so you can't get someone to trade clothes with Akira unless you manage to also guess his number."

"Oh. Okay then. Sorry, Aki. I'm just going to use this order for myself then." He looked over at Aya and wondered what his chances were that he'd actually get her number. "Then number five gives the king a lap dance."

"Safe!" Aya said, dropping her seven on the table. Kou pouted, and then widened his eyes when Shirogane slapped the five down.

"You'll pay for this, Kou," Shirogane said.

…

Remembering there was egg white in his glass just in time, Akira wandered over to the bar and got himself a new glass of plain water.

Kou hadn't returned from the bathroom yet. Akira looked over at Shirogane and asked casually: "Where did you learn to do that?"

"Being King is an eternity of soaking up knowledge, Akira-kun." Shirogane sipped his own drink. "Let's leave it at that."

…

"Oh, so it's me again," Master said. He looked a bit thoughtful, stood up and went to the bar to pull a bottle out from somewhere under the counter. The bottle was made of transparent glass, and the liquid inside had an ominous purplish green tinge.

"That's not poison, is it?" Nanaya said, but everyone was too busy worrying to contradict him.

"Number four drinks a glass of this."

"Aya-chan," Lulu said, turning to look at the other girl worryingly. But Aya sighed and said: "It's not me."

Akira exhaled noisily, went to the counter and set his glass down in front of Master.

"I always wanted to ask someone's opinion about this," Master said, pouring some into his glass, and Akira inwardly winced. So Master probably hadn't tested it before after all. Akira held the glass up to his nose and sniffed it. It smelled cloyingly sweet and vaguely alcoholic. He looked over at Aya, but she wasn't saying anything anymore about minors not being allowed to drink. The drink probably didn't even register as alcohol to her.

Akira took an uneasy sip.

"Hey," Akira said, pleasantly surprised. "It's not bad."

Master's smile radiated pleasure. "Really?"

"Yeah." Not seeing the need to be reserved about it, Akira drank it down in several huge gulps. He wiped his mouth with the heel of his hand. "Too sweet for my taste, but it's okay."

"I see," Master said. "Well, that's nice." They returned to the table, and Master added: "It was a drink originally designed for Rei. I'm glad you liked it."

Akira stopped with his hand on the back of his chair. He pulled his chair out and sat on it. "Technically," Akira began, "I don't know what you'd call me anymore. But does that mean I should expect some after-effects?"

"But you were fine when you drank it," Master said. He smiled. "If you were going to react badly to it, it would have happened in that first sip."

Too dangerous, Akira thought, touching his stomach gingerly. It didn't hurt, but there was the ghost of a dry-leaf feeling settling there, soft-sharp and cool-warm. Nothing else seemed to be happening though. What would Master even do if someone other than him or Kou had gotten the order? Or was the point for someone else to get it? Either way, it was probably safe because Master had the ability to heal things. Right then, though, the thought was scary rather than comforting.

Akira sighed. And Master was the nice one.

…

Kou beamed, threw his chopstick in the air and caught it. Kou had washed his face, and apparently also lost the piece of candy when he had disappeared earlier into the bathroom, but out of kindness or plain forgetfulness, no one asked after it. "I've already learned my lesson," Kou said. "Involving myself in an order is kinda dangerous, so I won't do that anymore." He gave his chopstick a lazy flick. "Let's see… Number three has to proposition number four. While the rest of us watch, of course."

"Proposition?" Aya said, going red. "You mean, a confession?"

"Asking out for a date?" Kengo, too, was red.

"Yeah, something like that," Kou said with a wolfish grin. "So young, Aya, Ken."

Akira kept his hand on his stomach. The feeling in his stomach was reaching outwards with febrile fingers, and he was starting to feel a bit hot and weird, but he wasn't too worried about this. "Number four doesn't have to accept, does he?"

"Ah, so Aki's four!" Kou slung his arm around Akira in brotherly fashion. "Then you probably get this all the time, right?" Kou pinched the boy's cheek. "Make sure you bash in the faces of anyone who asks this of you."

"You don't have to say," Akira muttered. "And it doesn't happen that often, you know…"

"I have number three," Shirogane said suddenly, and Akira looked up, his expression unreadable. Kou looked like he could have slapped himself for his order, or probably just for Shirogane being in it.

"This should be interesting," Nanaya drawled, and Lulu nodded, giggling.

Shirogane gave a strained sort of smile and tipped his hat low. "It's not that I am not aware of the concept, but… what am I supposed to do?"

"Just ask," Akira said in a resigned puff of breath. "That's what the order is about, right?"

"All right," Shirogane said. He took off his hat and set it gently down on the table, and for a moment met Akira's eyes before Akira looked instead at his hat. Shirogane looked away as well, and let the words out in a heavy whisper: "Will you go to bed with me, Akira-kun?"

"So direct!" Kou said with a false wince, shaking Akira perhaps too heartily. "No one does it like that," Nanaya agreed with Kou, disappointed that Shirogane had not in fact stuttered out an attempt at being subtle and coaxing. "It should at least be something like this, right? 'I wanna talk to you about something. Can we go somewhere we can be alone?' "

Akira gave a short laugh. "That wasn't what he meant by it," Akira said, "but that's what he said when we first met."

Nanaya raised his brows. "Are you an idiot? You didn't find this suspicious?"

"Very suspicious," Akira said, and sighed. "That's why I became a Shin."

…

Lulu held up her chopstick and beamed. "I want number one to feed number three sushi using only his mouth, and if any bit of it spills, they have to do it over again."

Nanaya sighed and pushed the three across the table. "I'm Three." He leaned over a bit to look at Master's number. "Ah," Nanaya said.

"I take it it's me?" Master sighed mournfully. "This is going to be difficult…" He turned to Lulu. "Can I at least pick it up with chopsticks before transferring it to my mouth?"

"Okay," Lulu said, nodding magnanimously. "I'll allow it since it's Master-san."

Master got the sushi, put it between his teeth, and reached out with his hands to make sure he'd correctly judged where Nanaya's face was, before leaning over and pushing the sushi with his lips into the other's mouth. Lulu crossed her arms across her chest and made a buzzing sound.

"No hands!" she said.

"Hey!" Nanaya said around a mouthful of sushi. He swallowed, then stood up and balled his hand. "He's not using his hands to feed me, he's using them to freaking _see_!"

"No hands," Lulu insisted, pouting. "Nana-chan's so mean…"

"Aren't you the one who's being mean?"

Akira stirred from his seat. "Don't shout," he said. Some time earlier he'd slumped forward and rested his forehead on the table, also hugging his arms, but he'd shaken his head furiously at Kou's and Kengo's questions and told them not to mind. Now Akira moved his head just slightly to give Nanaya a pale gray-eyed stare. He quickly looked away again, frowning and closing his eyes. His face, just visible under his hair, was flushed as if from a bad fever.

"Are-are you all right?" Nanaya gripped his shoulder, and Akira jumped and moved away from him, gathering himself up against Kou's chest.

"No closer," Akira said through clenched teeth, face flushing worse above Kou's shirt and fingers gripping into Kou's flesh hard enough to possibly leave bruises. Akira hid his eyes in Kou's shirt and said in a frustrated mutter: "Don't touch me. It makes me want to jump you."

The others digested Akira's statement in complete silence born from shock. And, "Oh, dear," Master said. "I guess now I know you're enough of a Rei for there to be an effect after a sort."

"Wait, why is it Nanaya?" Kou asked a bit heatedly. "I mean, me and Ken, we're practically rubbing shoulders with him and he's fine. Are we that unappealing?"

"Is that what you should be worrying about right now?" Aya said, herself embarrassed. "Are you okay, Akira?"

"Not okay," the boy said empathically, shaking his head. When Shirogane bowed over him to also see what was wrong, Akira pulled himself into a tighter ball against Kou. "Shirogane and Lulu should keep away too. Skin feels…want to crawl in…" Akira stopped. Shirogane retook his seat, and Kou scratched his head in bewilderment.

"Not just Shirogane-san but even this Nanaya and Lulu," grumbled Kou. "Aki, what are you getting yourself into?"

Akira lifted his face to look at Master almost pleadingly. "How long in effect…?"

"Two hours," Master said. "Probably shorter since the effect's this strong with you. Or longer, I'm not really sure. I'm sorry." Then he added helpfully: "I have another drink which might just possibly negate the effects of the first one."

Akira shuddered. "No. Not drinking any more."

"All right then. We'll just have to wait it out."

"I don't get it," Kengo said. "What's wrong with Akira?"

"I would also like to know, Master," Shirogane said, and Master flinched and wiped at his brow.

"As I said, it's a drink for Rei," Master finally said. "A calming tonic, to be exact. With the thought that the cause of stress is most likely a Shin."

"So the drink…?"

"…induces the drinker to have an affinity for Shin, yes. To recognize they're not enemies."

Shirogane angled his head, pulling back his hand without touching Akira when the boy flinched. "That doesn't seem to be simply the case," he pointed out.

"Well," Master said, and paused. "I did say it hit him pretty strong."

"So Aki's like this for, what, until evening?"

"Aw, that's boring," Kengo whined. "We haven't even played much yet. We're not stopping, are we, Akira?"

"Kengo!" Aya scolded, reaching across the table to pull him by the ear. "Be more considerate!" She was distracted by Lulu moving forward and saying playfully: "Akira-kuun…"

"Hey!" Aya shouted at her, pulling Lulu by the back of Akira's jacket which Lulu was wearing tied around her waist. Aya gave Lulu a vicious shake, and then started to push Lulu and Kengo in front of her to the door, both making noises of protest but afraid enough of her anger to not try anything. Aya turned back to Master and the rest with a worried, slightly apologetic smile. "Well then," she said. "We're turning in first. See you later." She shut the door.

There was a pause. Nanaya stopped by Akira briefly and gave him a quick pat on the back before walking to the door as well. "Don't worry," he called over his shoulder. "I'll make sure to forget this by tomorrow. See ya!"

With both Lulu and Nanaya gone, Akira was able to breathe a bit. There was still Shirogane though, and Master and Kou. Akira pushed himself away from Kou, no longer needing the older man to pull him back in case he did something.

"Okay," Akira mumbled, avoiding looking at Shirogane. "I'll walk home then."

He started quickly for the door, but Shirogane had also moved quickly to pull him back by the wrist and say, "Not like that, Akira-kun." Akira shuddered at the contact and the soft mention of his name. He bit back an uncharacteristic moan and pulled his wrist away, angry enough that he was able to meet Shirogane's eyes. "I can take care of myself. Seriously."

Shirogane glared at him for a few moments, and then raised a delicate eyebrow. "Lulu's dress," he reminded softly, and Akira looked down at himself. "Crap," he muttered. But he recovered quickly and changed into his Shin form. Unfortunately, he still carried over the effect of Master's 'calming tonic,' though Akira was thankful enough that it wasn't causing him to feel any strange affinity towards himself. Even with everything that had happened, that would have been too weird.

"I'll take you home," Shirogane offered, but Kou intercepted him.

"What's this?" Kou said. "Shirogane-san, you were listening, weren't you? Aki can't be around Shin today."

"Quite simply, I think it is safer if I accompany him," Shirogane said. "I don't trust Lulu at all. Or that other Shin. So move aside. I won't do anything to him."

"Is what you say," Kou said lightly enough, "and if Aki's the one who tries to do something to you first, then you still get to keep your word, right? I'm not believing you."

"And your intentions are any purer? Remind me again who has been following after him like some sick…"

Kou pointed an accusing finger right under Shirogane's nose. "The same goes for you too though!"

"I had the best reasons," Shirogane said stiffly, batting away Kou's finger, and "Oh yes," Kou ground out, waving his hand disgustedly. "Of course that's how it is."

Akira wanted very badly to leave them at their bickering and go out that door, but the two were directly in front of it, and after a few steps, he didn't want to risk getting any closer to Shirogane. He let out a frustrated sigh and crossed his arms. "You should probably give me that drink, Master."

"Are you sure?" Master asked.

"…Maybe not," Akira admitted his doubts. He frowned. "But I do have another idea." He concentrated, and this time he felt the change spilling over him and took it calmly. A wave of light radiated outwards from where Akira, and now Ryuuko, stood, and the two by the door looked up and dropped their angry stances to stare at him in surprise. Kou recovered first. "Ah, good idea, Aki!" he called, and after a pause corrected himself: "I mean Ryuuko."

"No," Master said faintly, and wiped at the sweat on his face. "I don't think it's a good idea…"

"Shirogane," Ryuuko said in his calm voice, and threw his arms around the other startled King.

"Wha—?" Kou stared. "Why?"

"Uhm," Shirogane said. His hands moved helplessly for a while, and then he gently tried to disentangle Ryuuko, who only pressed closer, his breath warm against Shirogane's ear, disturbing the hair hanging over his cheek. "Ryuuko, you… Akira-kun will not like this one bit…"

"I don't care," Ryuuko said clearly. There was a surprising note of petulance in his voice, and his face was flushed as Akira's had been a moment before. His fingers tangled in Shirogane's braid at the base of his neck, trying to undo the braid without removing the clasp. "He doesn't care either. So…"

"No, Ryuuko," Shirogane tried again, his voice rising in something that wasn't properly a shout yet. "I don't think you understand…"

"There should no longer be an effect, right?" Kou asked Master, and Master laughed nervously. "Maybe I made the batch too strong?" he wondered aloud. Kou thought there was no 'maybe' about it, of course. "Hey!"

"Well, Ryuuko is completely a Rei. That's probably why. We should have realized it when Akira, who's only partly Rei at best, still reacted that way."

Kou scratched his head again. Ryuuko was his king though, so he wasn't going to stop him. "Shouldn't he be stronger than Aki?"

Master's smile was too wide to be appropriate. "Right now, that's probably not the case."

Shirogane had a sudden stab of inspiration. He hit the back of Ryuuko's neck with the side of his hand and caught Ryuuko as he crumpled, unconscious, into his arms.

…

Akira groaned and opened his eyes. He pulled himself up in his bed, just a little surprised to find himself in his Shin form with a blanket over him. "I had a weird dream," he said.

Shirogane was sitting on the floor by his bed, and looked at him with slightly worried, but mostly inquisitive eyes. "Are you all right now, Akira-kun?"

Akira allowed his head to fall back on the pillow, scratching his head languidly in an effort to remember what had happened. Abruptly, his fingers stopped their movement, and Shirogane noted the color in his cheeks.

"If I may remind you, Lulu will want her dress back," Shirogane said in a casual whisper. Akira nodded. He turned on his side, his back to Shirogane.

"Thanks…for bringing me back…"

"That's perfectly all right."

A pause. Then: "Aya left her shoe in the bar," Akira said.

"Yes," Shirogane said.

"Strange dream," Akira said, a bit lamely.

"Yes."

Akira turned over, pulling his blanket up to his chin. His eyes, wetly luminous, met Shirogane's briefly. He burrowed his face into the blanket. "Can we…can we forget it happened?"

Shirogane smiled. "Of course, Akira-kun."

_End._

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Author's End Note:

So now Akira has a story he doesn't want Shirogane to tell :D Yeah, I wrote this instead of completing the continuation chapter for my other fic. I guess I'm procrastinating and everything… Sorry:) I hope you liked it anyway. 


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